Theatre League's Personals at The Viad Playhouse on the Park
(out
of 
)Mark S.P. Turvin
(home office) (602) 912-0117
I can be reached for comment via e-mail at: mspt@goldfishpublishers.com
Reviewed 3/12/98
(out
of )There is a curious phenomenon that exists in theatre. It's been around for most of this last half-century, and it was created in and now generally resides in Manhattan proper, with a few appearances in other major cities throughout the country. This is a type of theatre known as the Cabaret Revue. In layman's terms, it's an attempt by one or several playwrights, librettists, lyricists and performers to show off their wittiness, cleverness and theatrical talents by concentrating on a given topic to impress their fellow Manhattanites. Often these shows are set in New York City (since for a New Yorker, there are only two places; New York and Everywhere Else), and they bubble over with witty repartee, oddball situations and rapid-fire music and lyrics. Forbidden Broadway is of this breed, as is Six Women With Brain Death. Few of the songs and skits from these shows ever escape the smoky, dimly lit basement bars that these productions inhabit, but, when done right, they can be everything from entertaining to stinging. Granted, depth is often sacrificed for wit, but something's gotta give.
And it is this type of show, Personals, a sometimes clever, generally witty, often trite Cabaret Revue that Theatre League is mounting at the Viad Playhouse on the Park. The claims-to-fame of this urbane look at twenty-somethings trying to find love in 20 words or less are that it was written in 1986 by the creators of the popular sitcom Friends, and the original production featured a struggling young performer named Jason Alexander, of Seinfeld fame. Director Bob Sorenson has done a solid job and collected a very talented cast of six to mount this enjoyable bit of fluff.
At the base of this play are six performers that play different parts, some recurring, some plot-twisters, who are struggling to find the personal of their dreams in an impersonal world. There are Sam and Claire, who live next door to each other, but must lie about themselves through an ad to discover each other. There's a personals typesetter who unwittingly winds up in a three-way love affair with his wife and a very odd little man. There's Louis, a repressed and self-conscious sort who is trying to learn about the ways of love through an audio cassette. Sprinkled in among these and a few other vignettes are quick takes at the trials and tribulations of escaping loneliness in a city of fifteen million.
The piece itself is unremarkable, save for a few interesting songs and scenes, but is made remarkable by the overwhelming heart of all of the performers. There is not one of the six who does not believe in the material more than it deserves. They sell it for more than it's worth, and we're buying it in a way that is genuinely surprising.
As this is an ensemble piece, the work of the cast saves this overly-witty, grandly-urbane puff-piece. Todd Yard and Dana Pauley are wonderful as Sam and Claire, as well as their other characters. Beau Heckman is hilarious as Louis, and Kim Haveman does a great job as his love of a very short lifetime, Louise, again as well as their other, smaller roles. Christie Klein sings and dances up a storm, and Robert Harper is quite enjoyable with all of his roles, save for the textually annoying and seemingly unnecessary part of the typesetter, though this is no fault of his own.
There are several enjoyable song and dance numbers, such as Mr. Yard's rendition of "A Night Alone," the men lamenting the great times of "Second Grade," and the big showstopping numbers "I'd Rather Dance Alone," and "Some Things Don't End." There are even a few touching moments, such as Ms. Klein's clever "I Think You Should Know," and Ms. Pauley's heartbreaking "Imagine My Surprise." Mr. Sorenson's direction was light and well-paced, and Jo Ann Yeoman's choreography was appropriately frenetic and contemporary. Alan Ruch's pre-recorded Musical Direction and Orchestrations were solid and well done.
John Barnett's basic set design and Michael Eddy's lighting design worked well with a difficult space. The atmosphere was somewhere between a cabaret setting and a full-blown production, but this helped the feel of the show. David Ternby's sound design was quite good, considering the problems inherent with this theatre.
The preview crowd, mostly twenty-somethings themselves, really
enjoyed the evening, and those who are looking for a musical version
of Friends, albeit a much more witty and clever version,
will not be disappointed. The performances alone recommend this
production as an enjoyable evening alone or with a blind date.
Production Details:
Personals Book and Lyrics by David Crane,
Seth Friedman and Marta Kaufmanns, Music by Alan Menken, Stephen
Schwartz, Michael Sckloff, William Dreskin, Joel Phillip Friedman
and Seth Friedman
Viad Playhouse on the Park, Phoenix
503-5555
March 13th-April 26th, 1998